Missouri College Students Confront AI Assistants on Campus

As college students return to campus in Missouri, they’re facing a new reality: artificial intelligence is increasingly woven into their academic work. Conversations with students reveal a range of attitudes towards AI use, from embracing its potential to being wary of its limitations.

The University of Missouri has introduced expanded guidelines for AI use and made Show Me AI, a campus-wide large language model, available to faculty and students. However, the decision on how much to rely on AI ultimately rests with each individual student.

Graduate students Rose Turner and Katie Kuziara shared their experiences with using AI in coursework. While some professors have clear expectations for AI use, others are more flexible. Turner noted that her school’s stance is ‘very clear about how they feel’ but also accommodating.

‘They’re still quite flexible,’ she said. This flexibility allows students to explore the benefits and drawbacks of AI assistants without feeling constrained by strict rules.

Kuziara, on the other hand, has stopped using AI in her coursework after encountering inaccurate information. She found that relying too heavily on AI led to errors in her work, including a mistake in an essay date. This experience left her ‘quite against’ using AI for academic purposes.

Jennifer Jewel, PhD, assistant provost of academic and learning innovation at Columbia College, emphasized the rapid pace of technological development. ‘Technology is developing so fast that we can’t even keep up,’ she said. As a result, higher education institutions are shifting their focus towards training students on developing technology rather than simply preventing its use.

Jewel’s comments reflect a significant shift in how colleges approach AI. Three years ago, the concern was about stopping or limiting AI use; now, it’s about integrating it into the general education system. This change acknowledges that AI is no longer something to be feared but an essential tool for students to learn and master.

Turner noted that avoiding AI altogether can be challenging, even for those who don’t intentionally rely on it. ‘I think it’s hard to avoid you in your studies,’ she said, highlighting the pervasive nature of AI in academic work.